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Much recent media attention has been given to a scintillating cast of characters surrounding the “Russia Investigation,” from former spies to Kremlin lawyers to pop star sons of real estate magnates. Dr. Blasing's talk, however, moves away from sensationalism to instead offer profiles of 20 contemporary Russians who are engaged in important, innovative—sometimes controversial--work in their fields of journalism, science and technology, human rights and the creative arts. Join us for part 2 of our year-long “Russia Watch” series and learn about some of the many creative innovators working in and around Russia today.

Dr. Murray Bessette is the director of academic programs at the Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation. Prior to joining VOC, he was an associate professor of government at Morehead State University, specializing in political philosophy, national security, counter terrorism and intelligence studies. Dr. Bessette holds a BA and MA in political science from University of Alberta and an MA and PhD in political science from Claremont Graduate University.

Socialist revolutionaries have claimed that overcoming the bourgeois system would usher in a new way of life where the free development of each person is a condition for the free development of all. Life in this classless society would be marked by liberty, equality and solidarity. The appeal of these universally recognized ends both captured the imagination of those who believe there must be final political solution to all human ills and justified whatever actions were deemed necessary for bringing this situation into existence. And yet, in each and every instance, politically empowered socialism has produced a system of servitude, inequality and suspicion, where the life of a dissenter is solitary, poor, nasty, brutish and short. Socialism’s inevitable failure makes a critical re-examination of the means appropriate to the pursuit of these ends all the more important today.

Co-sponsored with the Departments of History, Philosophy, and Political Science.

Russia Watch: 20 Questions on the Future of US-Russia Relations will feature an interdisciplinary panel of Russia experts from UK, moderated by Molly Blasing (MCLLC-Russian) and featuring:

Karen Petrone (History)

Jeanmarie Rouhier-Willoughby (MCLLC-Russian)

Cynthia Ruder (MCLLC-Russian)

Gregory Hall (Patterson School)

Panelists will respond to a set of up to 20 questions curated from queries that students, faculty and community members will submit electronically to organizers in advance of the session. The Q&A-style discussion will run for 60-75 minutes. Attendees will leave with a list of resources to explore further the major questions on Russia that arise in the session.

In recent months, revelations concerning Russia’s role in geopolitical struggles and in the 2016 American Presidential elections have dominated the headlines of our newspapers and social media feeds, with new developments coming at an almost bewildering pace. The details are alarming and destabilizing, and the cast of characters—from Putin to hackers to pop stars—have had something of an intoxicating effect on the American imagination. Public conversations about Russia have reached an intensity we have not seen in decades.

The future of US-Russia relations will have an impact on a range of issues that affect our communities, from electoral politics to human rights, from military alliances to cyber security and global economic development. Yet, in the era of “fake news” and shifting media landscapes, it can be difficult to know how best to approach the task of improving personal and institutional information literacy when it comes to news and analysis of Russia.

Given the complexity of the issues at hand, and the propensity toward misinformation about and exoticization of Russia, how can we as an intellectual community work to improve the tools we have to understand and engage with this critical aspect of contemporary foreign relations? What resources are available to the reading public for understanding and interpreting Russia, and how should we approach them?

Russia Watch 20/20 is a series of four interrelated events that come on the heels of a well-attended panel discussion on the topic of “Russia and the World in 2017” for the College of Arts and Sciences Civic Life seminar series in Spring 2017. The expanded “Russia Watch” program of events will focus on the present and future of US-Russia relations. We will bring UK’s Russia specialists from across the disciplines into conversation with community members and students in order to discover and make sense of the tools we have available for understanding Russia’s role in the world today.

A public lecture by Dr. Eugenie Scott, followed by a discussion. Dr. Eugenie C. Scott is the former Executive Director of the National Center for Science Education, Inc. She is an internationally-known expert on the creationism and evolution controversy and science denialism, and is called upon by the press and other media to explain science to the general public. The author of Evolution vs Creationism: An Introduction and co-editor with Glenn Branch of Not in Our Classroom: Why Intelligent Design is Wrong for our Schools, she is the recipient of numerous awards from scientists and educators, and has been awarded nine honorary degrees.

Abstract/summary: In the 1920s, many states considered passage of antievolution laws. Tennessee's famous 1925 Scopes Trial is the best known of these, but such legislation actually first was proposed in Kentucky. However, Kentucky scientists vigorously protested such laws, and the legislature backed down. Antievolutionism in Kentucky did not go away after the Scopes Trial, of course, and has manifested itself in many ways. In 1980-81, the Fayette County Public Schools Board of Education was approached by a citizens group promoting the teaching of creation science; the protracted struggle over what should be taught presaged battles to take place in communities all over the nation regarding state department of education policies, and the recent appearance of recreational facilities promoting creationism.

The Department of Gender & Women's Studies at the University of Kentucky is proud to host the first annual Kentucky Gender & Women's Studies Conference (KYGWS).

Organized by GWS doctoral students, the KYGWS conference will provide attendees with a chance to connect with, learn from, and strengthen solidarities with one another. We seek to give students and faculty an opportunity to transform their lived experience or classroom study into illuminating analysis or applied research that can pave the way for greater understanding of marginalized individuals, disadvantaged communities, and/or cultural differences.

In addition to creating a space for undergraduate and graduate students to practice and acquire skills for further conference presentations, the KYGWS conference will allow attendees to meet and learn from other students from diverse worldviews and cultures. Conference attendees will have the opportunity to present their research, but we also invite students to attend the conference to be in community and conversation with scholars of all levels.